Dollar General Accused Of Pricing Fraud
An audit of 20 Dollar General stores revealed that the company was charging more at the register than it was advertising on the shelves according to a recent inspection conducted by Butler County Auditor’s Office. All 20 stores with pricing discrepancies were located in Butler County. All 20 Dollar General stores that were surveyed failed pricing inspections this month. Auditors found double-digit error rates of up to 88%, according to a news release sent out by the county’s auditor’s office. Stores are only allowed an error rate of 2%.
According to the auditor, most of the stores were advertising products at a lower price if two or more products were purchased at the same time. However, the reduced price was not reflected at the cash register, the news release states. In some cases, store managers would enter the reduced price if the customer complained about being overcharged. The Ohio Department of Agriculture, which oversees weights and measures, has been notified of the pricing discrepancies. This is potentially a violation of the Consumer Sales Practices Act.
The Consumer Sales Practices Act
Ohio consumers are protected from various unlawful business practices. The Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act is a piece of legislation that prohibits specific types of business practices and provides legal remedies for consumers who have been impacted by unfair business practices.
The Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act prohibits unfair, deceptive, and unconscionable business practices by a store like Dollar General or other suppliers.
A supplier, under the definition provided by the law, means a seller, lessor, assignor, franchisor, or any other party engaged in the business of affecting or soliciting consumer transactions, whether or not this entity deals directly with the consumer.
A consumer transaction refers to the sale, lease, assignment, award by chance, or other transfer of an item of goods or service to an individual for purposes that are primarily personal.
When a business violates the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act, the attorney general can file a cause of action against the business and the consumer may also file suit. Depending on the violation, a consumer is eligible to receive $5,000 in noneconomic damages on top of any economic losses they suffer as a result of the violation.
Advertising a product at a specific price on the shelves and then charging the customer another price at the register is a violation of the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act. As of yet, the attorney general has not indicated whether or not they will file a lawsuit against Dollar General for failing to price products at the advertised prices. The attorney general does not comment on potential lawsuits that may or may not be filed.
Talk to an Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act Attorney Today
The Columbus consumer fraud attorneys at Kohl & Cook Law Firm, LLC represent the interests of consumers in violations of the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act. Call our office today to schedule a free consultation and we can begin discussing your situation right away.
Source:
fox19.com/2022/10/28/serious-problem-ohio-probes-failed-price-inspections-20-dollar-general-stores-butler-county/
